Crowds swam with sharks off Israel’s coast – then a man disappeared
A body has been found after a swimmer went missing in an area where the marine predators have drawn curious beachgoers
Israeli police on Tuesday scoured the Mediterranean coast for a swimmer they fear may have been attacked by a shark in an area that has long seen close encounters between marine predators and beachgoers who sometimes seek them out.
A shiver of endangered dusky and sandbar sharks has been swimming close to the area for years, attracting onlookers who approach the sharks, drawing pleas from conservation groups for authorities to separate people from the wild animal.
Nature groups say those warnings went unheeded. Police and rescuers launched a search along the coast after reports that a shark attacked a swimmer on a beach near the city of Hadera.
Israel’s Fire and Rescue Authority announced on Tuesday afternoon they had found remains of a body, which was brought to the forensic institute for identification.
On Tuesday, the beach was closed as search teams used boats and underwater equipment to look for the man. His identity was not immediately known, but Israeli media said he had gone to swim with the sharks.
Israelis flocked in large numbers to the beach during a weeklong holiday, sharing the waters with a dozen or more sharks. Some tugged on the sharks’ fins, while others threw them fish to eat.